Consultations with a psychotherapist via video chat are not much different than live sessions.
The first step is to exchange several messages by mail. I need to know what the problem is in order to determine if I am the right specialist for you, or if I should refer you to a colleague. Then we exchange contacts and hold a video call using protected software.
All you need is a quiet place where you can talk without being disturbed, a stable internet connection, and a desire to make a change 🙂
The psychotherapist today is not an elderly man with beard and glasses, who, sitting quietly in a gloomy cabinet, takes notes in a leather notebook – this is the therapist from the generation of my professors, however, times are changing.
The therapist of today merges with the crowd, feels its energy, and captures the emotions and vibrations associated with every social event, fashion fad, cataclysm, new social network or application. Life is happening dynamically and we are always up-to-date with its changes, learning from our clients, being accessible to them in a variety of channels, sharing our personalities in order to inspire positive change in others. Our blog is an essential part of this self-reflective, transformative process.
Who can’t benefit from them?
For better or for worse, we are all connected with the immense stream of digital information and all we can do now is take advantage of it.
Psychotherapy isn’t excluded from this tendency. Many specialists turn to the digital means of communication in order to give more options to their clients. I am one of these professionals. This method of work allows our clients more flexibility with their schedules, making it more accessible and location independent. In addition, getting in contact with us is much easier and faster as a result. And of course, we can offer more affordable rates thanks to the savings we make from not renting an expensive office in a fancy area of the city. Now you can receive psychotherapy from your comfortable home, office or even your favorite cafe.
By using an online platform we see a multitude of new advantages, since the client-consultant relationship doesn’t have to be interrupted during work trips or family reunions (paradoxically, these are some of the most stressful situations for many of my clients).
It is difficult to accurately determine when ordinary sadness progresses into a depressive state, nevertheless with time passing, they are quite clearly identifiable. Sadness has a certain cause, it lasts for a while (usually a few months) and at some point begins to slowly fade away. This is where the old cliché that time heals everything comes from. Yes, time definitely heals the healthy sadness, but not depression.
Sometimes this condition, instead of fading, grows into existential grief, which little by little covers all aspects of everyday life and builds up in the consciousness as a permanent state of despair. Then it manifests on a physiological level, interferes the normal functioning of the individual, and the condition becomes incapacitating. It has to be treated on several fronts – with medications (especially in severe cases), with exercises – meditation, cognitive behavioral methods, and last but not least with psychoanalysis or other types of depth psychotherapy. In a long-term depression, the root of the problem is usually less clear.
Thoughts of suicide or self-harm usually come at a time when it is no longer possible to deal with so much psychological tension. In this state of helplessness the only way out seems to be actual physical pain. These are quite typical for depressive states. The client should not be afraid of them but it is very important to share them with the therapist, so that they may better help them in their path of recovery.
If said thoughts extend to urge for action, the subject must reach for emergency psychiatrical help immediately. Remember that deep depression and suicidal thoughts should be consulted first with medical professionals and clinical psychologists. Online counseling can only be considered as complimentary help for less serious conditions.
What is the difference between fear, phobia and anxiety?
Fear is a perfectly normal way for a living being to survive in hostile nature. For us, however, fears can be very abstract. Fear of commitment, for instance, is related to all conscious or unconscious connotations that burden the word “relationship” with negative meaning. Fear of failure may be very logical, at first glance, but it is also a product of many personal motives that do not have a universal explanation.
Anxiety is a very frequent reason why people nowadays are seeking a psychotherapist. Sometimes it can become incapacitating. The most stressful thing about it is that anxiety has all the physiological dimensions of fear, but there is no specific source related to it. An anxious individual lives in a constant state of fear without knowing what he/she is afraid of.
Phobia is an interesting phenomenon where all this fear and anxiety is focused on one object that cannot hurt us. It is an attempt of consciousness to deal with anxiety by giving it some physical shape.
In psychoanalytic therapy, we seek out the origin of these fears, anxiety and insecurities, and we look for a solution to the underlying problem, not just to its current manifestations.
Psychoanalysis is one of the many existing forms of psychotherapy. I chose to dedicate my career to this field because I see it as the most profound and complex method of treating others thus far. Even when the client (also called analysant) arrives with a specific problem, the therapist tries to look at it in the context of the overall personality and subjective experiences of the individual. We try to interpret the unconscious motivations and beliefs that have led him/her to suffering. We do not put people in a box because every person is unique and his/her problems require a unique solution. Our ultimate goal is to help the analysant discover what is best for him/herself, while in the pursuit of overcoming their greatest problems.
The wide range of topics discussed in the analytical process makes it extremely suitable for treating clinically healthy people who do not have a severe mental health problem, yet feel tense, sad, or unsatisfied with certain aspects of their lives. Personally, these are the most interesting as well as complex cases.
Psychoanalysis is a method practiced only by experienced therapists – with 6-9 years of university education. In addition, participation in seminars and courses organized by world associations is required for a minimum of 4 years; however, most of us choose to continue our studies further. My personal consisted of 14 years of university and practical training.